More Delays Due To Channel Tunnel Disruption

The Channel Tunnel is suffering further disruption, once again forcing the M20 in Kent to become a giant lorry park.

Police brought back Operation Stack in the early hours of Tuesday - after it was stood down on Sunday.

The measure sees French-bound lorries "stacked" along a closed section of the M20 while their drivers wait to cross the Channel.

Junctions eight to 13 - a distance of around 25 miles - were closed to non-freight traffic on Tuesday.

Kent Police blamed "high volumes" of freight traffic heading towards the Port of Dover and Eurotunnel, combined with "continued disruption" in the northern French port of Calais.

"Motorists are advised to plan their journeys carefully and allow plenty of extra time if travelling towards the east of the county," police said.

Eurotunnel said its passenger services have been disrupted due to "an incident on the terminal".

"We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience this will cause to your journey," the firm said.

The Channel Tunnel operator said there were waiting times of up to an hour in both directions.

Migrants disrupting the terminal in Coquelles, not far from Calais, has become a regular occurrence.

Some 5,000 people, mostly from Africa and the Middle East, have set up camp around the area. From there, they often try to board trains, lorries or ferries to the UK.

Home Secretary Theresa May is hosting a UK-France summit on Tuesday to discuss the ongoing migrant crisis as authorities on both sides of the Channel struggle to deal with it.

The latest disruption is also expected to affect ferry services.

The Port of Dover said it remained "open for business", with P&O operating full services to Calais and DFDS Seaways to Dunkirk.

"The port and the ferry operators are together working hard to serve all customers travelling to and from the continent," the port said.

"We apologise for any delays or inconvenience as a result of traffic congestion."

At the weekend, thousands of holidaymakers faced long delays as the Channel crossings were disrupted by migrant activity.

Part of the M20 was closed and passengers hoping to take cars to France were held up when the Tunnel was shut briefly.

Some travellers were delayed by up to five hours on what was one of the busiest weekends of the year.